Abstract
Background
Perception of risk may impact a woman’s decision to take a needed drug during pregnancy. There is a paucity of research on this topic in the literature.
Objectives
(1) To evaluate the perception of risk of 17 commonly used drugs and other substances by pregnant women. (2) To investigate which sources of information regarding exposures during pregnancy were most commonly used by women.
Methods
A questionnaire was developed through the University of Oslo’s website for Internet surveys and posted on four Web pages used by pregnant women and mothers, from mid-September 2008 through October 2008. The inclusion criteria included women who were (1) pregnant or 2) a mother of a child less than 5 years old.
Results
A total of 1,793 eligible women completed the questionnaire. Most women overestimated the teratogenic risk associated with all the drugs during pregnancy. Characteristics of the women that were associated with a high perception of risk were primiparity, higher age, higher education, and choosing not to use a drug during pregnancy. More than 80% of the women had used drugs during pregnancy, mostly paracetamol, penicillins and reflux medications. The physician, the product information leaflet and the pharmacist were the three most frequently used sources of information.
Conclusion
Women overestimate the risk of drug use and other exposures during pregnancy. Therefore, it is important for health care providers to use evidence-based information, to reduce unnecessary anxiety, and to ensure safe and appropriate treatment during pregnancy.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Finer LB, Henshaw SK (2006) Disparities in rates of unintended pregnancy in the United States, 1994 and 2001. Perspect Sex Reprod Health 38(2):90–96
Sanz E, Gomez-Lopez T, Martinez-Quintas MJ (2001) Perception of teratogenic risk of common medicines. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 95(1):127–131
Einarson A (2007) The way women perceive teratogenic risk: how it can influence decision making during pregnancy regarding drug use or abortion of a wanted pregnancy. In: Koren G (ed) Medication safety in pregnancy and breastfeeding. McGraw-Hill, New York, pp 309–312
Hancock RL, Koren G, Einarson A, Ungar WJ (2007) The effectiveness of Teratology Information Services (TIS). Reprod Toxicol 23(2):125–132
Koren G, Bologa M, Long D, Feldman Y, Shear NH (1989) Perception of teratogenic risk by pregnant women exposed to drugs and chemicals during the first trimester. Am J Obstet Gynecol 160(5.1):1190–1194
Bonari L, Koren G, Einarson TR, Jasper JD, Taddio A, Einarson A (2005) Use of antidepressants by pregnant women: evaluation of perception of risk, efficacy of evidence based counseling and determinants of decision making. Arch Womens Ment Health 8(4):214–220
Organization of Teratology Information Specialists (OTIS) (2009) Home page. http://www.otispregnancy.org/hm/. Accessed 27 February 2009
European Network of Teratology Information Services (ENTIS) (2009) Home page. http://www.entis-org.com/. Accessed 27 February 2009
Sinikovic DS, Yeatman HR, Cameron D, Meyer BJ (2009) Women’s awareness of the importance of long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid consumption during pregnancy: knowledge of risks, benefits and information accessibility. Public Health Nutr 12(4):562–569
Bondarianzadeh D, Yeatman H, Condon-Paoloni D (2007) Listeria education in pregnancy: lost opportunity for health professionals. Aust N Z J Public Health 31(5):468–474
van Trigt AM, Waardenburg CM, Haaijer-Ruskamp FM, de Jong-van den Berg LT (1994) Questions about drugs: how do pregnant women solve them? Pharm World Sci 16(6):254–259
Larsson M (2009) A descriptive study of the use of the Internet by women seeking pregnancy-related information. Midwifery 25(1):14–20
Koren G, Gladstone D, Robeson C, Robieux I (1992) The perception of teratogenic risk of cocaine. Teratology 46(6):567–571
Schaefer C, Peters PWJ, Miller RK (eds) (2007) Drugs during pregnancy and lactation. Treatment options and risk assessment, 2nd ed. Academic Press, New York
Bentur Y, Horlatsch N, Koren G (1991) Exposure to ionizing radiation during pregnancy: perception of teratogenic risk and outcome. Teratology 43(2):109–112
University of Oslo, Norway (2009) Nettskjema. nettskjema.uio.no/index.html?lang=en. Accessed March 2009
John OP, Benet-Martinez V (2000) Measurement: reliability, construct validation, and scale construction. In: Reis HT, Judd CM (eds) Handbook of research methods in social and personality psychology. Cambridge University Press, New York, pp 339–369
Norwegian Institute of Public Health (2006) Medical birth registry of Norway annual report 2003–2004. NIPS, Oslo
Statistics Norway (2008) Population. Table 03031: population by sex, age and marital status 2008. http://www.ssb.no/english/. Accessed 1 December 2009
Statistics Norway (2007) Education level in the population. Table 3: population 16 years and over by, by level of education, gender and age 2007. http://www.ssb.no/english/. Accessed 1 December 2009
Gendron MP, Martin B, Oraichi D, Bérard A (2009) Health care providers’ requests to Teratogen Information Services on medication use during pregnancy and lactation. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 65(5):523–531
Frost Widnes SK, Schjøtt J (2008) Advice on drug safety in pregnancy: are there differences between commonly used sources of information? Drug Saf 31(9):799–806
Holst L, Wright D, Nordeng H, Haavik S (2009) Use of herbal preparations during pregnancy. focus group discussion among expectant mothers attending a hospital antenatal clinic in Norwich UK. Complement Ther Clin Pract (in press)
Zaffani S, Cuzzolin L, Benoni G (2006) Herbal products: behaviors and beliefs among Italian women. Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf 15(5):354–335
Cohen-Kerem R, Nulman I, Abramow-Newerly M, Medina D, Maze R, Brent RL, Koren G (2006) Diagnostic radiation in pregnancy: perception versus true risks. J Obstet Gynaecol Can 28(1):43–48
Ratnapalan S, Bona N, Chandra K, Koren G (2004) Physicians’ perceptions of teratogenic risk associated with radiography and CT during early pregnancy. AJR Am J Roentgenol 182(5):1107–1109
Statistics Norway (2008) Use of ICT in households, 2nd quarter 2008. http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/10/03/ikthus_en/. Accessed 1 December 2008
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Nordeng, H., Ystrøm, E. & Einarson, A. Perception of risk regarding the use of medications and other exposures during pregnancy. Eur J Clin Pharmacol 66, 207–214 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-009-0744-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00228-009-0744-2